When the goddess Artemis goes missing, she is believed to have been kidnapped.And now it's up to Percy and his friends to find out what happened. Who is powerful enough to kidnap a goddess? They must find Artemis before the winter solstice, when her influence on the Olympian Council could swing an important vote on the war with the titans. Not only that, but first Percy will have to solve the mystery of a rare monster that Artemis was hunting when she disappeared -- a monster rumored to be so powerful it could destroy Olympus forever.

Considering that I started this one yesterday in the evening, I’m so grateful that the Percy Jackson books are such pageturners or else I wouldn’t have finished this review for today. Now that I’m thinking on it, I was definitely flipping pages in The Titan’s Curse faster than ever before. This series is really starting to pick up speed for me. I flew through it at pegasus speed. Or something like that. Anyway, with The Titan’s Curse, I definitely feel like the stakes are starting to get much more intense, just like I’d hoped.

The tone of this series subtly shifts a bit more to the dark side in The Titan’s Curse. The comic relief’s still there of course, but everything’s a bit more dangerous and the comedic elements might be slightly more spaced out. There’s also more of an overarching plot to this one than in previous installments, which had breaks for games and little adventures. Now, it’s pretty much all about advancing the larger plot of the impending war against the titans and the prophecy that might be about Percy.

The Titan’s Curse comes with yet another prophecy delivered by the Oracle. In this one, the reader learns that one of the five selected for this quest will die, killed at the hand of their father, and that one will be lost. Umm, hello tension. If you want me to be invested emotionally in the outcome, letting me know that someone will most definitely be dying by the end of the book is a good way to do that. Plus, Annabeth is in jeopardy, which is not cool bro. In the previous installments, I felt like everyone was safe, but now I was really questioning which member of the questing team would bite the dust, thus the intense reading speed.

As with The Sea of Monsters, there continues to be great character development. In the previous one, Percy discovered new depths to Clarisse, who is sadly lacking form The Titan’s Curse. However, he does get to meet some new characters. Plus, he’s able to forge a new understanding of Dionysus, which I think was sorely needed and all the more touching for how much of a dick Mr. D was throughout the series. It’s not like anyone really becomes someone different and changes intrinsically, but they’ll let a little of their better side shine through and I really love that. It’s not like Percy will suddenly be best friends with someone he misunderstood but they learn to respect one another and form alliances. It’s cool. Oh, also super curious to see what becomes of Thalia, because she could basically do anything at this point. Oh oh, also also very glad to see Grover getting to really do some stuff and be less of a silly sidekick.

There’s a whole bunch of new characters introduced, and they’re pretty much all winners. Obviously, my heart was immediately charmed by Bessie, the sea cow monster thing, and Blackjack, the pegasus shown on the cover. How much do I love that the pegasi talk like they’re from New York? So much, and I don’t even know why. I wasn’t so sure initially how I felt about the new heroes, Bianca and Nico, but by the end both won me over. They will do such interesting things. Then there’s Zoë, a Hunter, who’s kind of a bitch, but also awesome. The way that Riordan ties all the plot threads together by the end was little short of masterful.

Finally, I do think I see the ship starting to like trim sails or whatever nautical jargon means getting ready to leave the dock. Like, there’s the school dance at the beginning and it’s like they’re still a bit too young for romantical feelings, but things do seem to be changing. The fact that Aphrodite is watching Percy and Annabeth like her own personal reality TV station is basically my new favorite thing. I expect major cuteness, please. Pretty much the only issue I had with this book was that there was not enough Annabeth.

Basically, I am ready for the next book, but unfortunately the ebook has not been made available to me by my library, and I can’t read the copy I bought because traveling. Much sad. There better be shipping and death and pegasi.

Favorite Quote:

“Let us find the dam snack bar,” Zoe said. “We should eat while we can.”

Grover cracked a smile. “The dam snack bar?”

Zoe blinked. “Yes. What is funny?”

“Nothing,” Grover said, trying to keep a straight face. “I could use some dam french fries.”
Even Thalia smiled at that. “And I need to use the dam restroom.”

Maybe it was the fact that we were so tired and strung out emotionally, but I started cracking up, and Thalia and Grover joined in, while Zoe just looked at me. “I do not understand.”

Finally, I do think I see the ship starting to like trim sails or whatever nautical jargon means getting ready to leave the dock.

SQUEALS OF GLEE. I KNEW YOU’D GET THERE! GOOD GIRL!! 😀 😀 😀

Other reactions to this review included:
– Insane giggling
– Covering mouth to keep from revealing things
– Cackling at how distressed you will be about future things
– Scratching head because I do not remember some of these characters and geez has it really been over 2 years since I read this series? I should reread it.